Republican Lawmakers Challenge Public Right To Place Idea On Arizona Ballot

By Holliday Moore
Published: Tuesday, February 21, 2017 - 9:13am

Lawmakers are fighting over the Arizona Constitution and the public's right to bypass them when they don’t agree with the policies.  

Last week, a proposed plan asked to make it illegal for citizens to hire and pay petitioners for every signature they collected.  

Tomorrow, House Representatives will debate HCR2029.

The plan would require petitioners also gather 10 percent of those signatures in each of the state’s 30 legislative districts for permission to place the idea on the ballot.

Yuma Republican Representative Don Shooter said it would stop dark money contributions.

"It also divests the power equally amongst the areas, so that if Maricopa County decides they want to put a referral to steal everybody else in the state's water,” Shooter used as an example, “the rural counties have something to say about it."

Phoenix Democrat Representative Ken Clark warned of a potential standoff pitting rural and urban citizens against one another.

“You could put yourself in a situation where the vast majority of Arizonans want something,” Clark said, “but one district could hold everything up."

Sixty percent of Arizona voters live in Maricopa County.  

The measure does not require the same due diligence from state lawmakers passing legislation.